The Government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices for Feb 4-6, 2012 (note that some may also be given separate headlines)
The International Trade Administration has initiated a new shipper review for the antidumping duty order on chlorinated isocyanurates from China (A-570-898) at the request of Puyang Cleanway Chemicals Ltd. The ITA will determine if this company is eligible for an estimated AD cash deposit rate other than the "All Others" rate it currently receives.
On February 2, 2012, State Department Assistant Secretary Michael Posner discussed Burma (Myanmar) and its future. He noted that according to recent press reports, Burmese President Thein Sein wants the Burmese people to take part in the democratic reform process and stated that he will endeavor to establish a healthy democracy in the country. Posner stated the possibility of real democratic change could eventually lead to a much brighter future for Burma. However, he noted that much work still remains to be done.
Google has nothing relevant to add to EMI’s copyright infringement case against “used” digital music reseller ReDigi, U.S. District Judge Richard Sullivan in New York said in an order denying Google’s request to file a friend-of-the-court brief. Google had told the judge EMI’s claims could blur or undermine the legal distinctions that make possible the cloud-computing industry, such as the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in favor of Cablevision’s remote-DVR service (WID Feb 2 p7), which added legal clarity to the right of cloud providers to store things at the direction of a user without incurring liability for potential infringement. In a two-sentence order, Sullivan said EMI and ReDigi are “fully capable of raising these issues themselves -- and have every incentive to do just that.” EMI made the same argument at greater length in a letter to Sullivan opposing Google’s request to file a brief, saying the search company gave a “nearly verbatim rehash” of one ReDigi claim, that the reseller is either not distributing “copies” under the Copyright Act or is protected by the first-sale doctrine. Google’s concerns “are not even at issue in this case,” EMI said: The label doesn’t challenge a user’s uploading a song to a cloud locker service and streaming it back to himself, or “space-shifting” the song to other devices for personal use. The case is all about ReDigi and its users “copying files for purposes of transfer and sale, for profit, to other users,” EMI said. The label said Google had “quite clearly” taken sides in the dispute, contrary to the search company’s claim, arguing that EMI’s preliminary injunction motion should be denied because damages owed the label by ReDigi could be “easily calculated” later.
The International Trade Administration is publishing notices in the February 3, 2012 Federal Register on the following AD/CV proceedings (any notices that announce changes to AD/CV duty rates, the scope, affected firms, or effective dates will be detailed in another ITT article):
The International Trade Administration has made a preliminary affirmative determination of critical circumstances in the countervailing duty investigation of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells (solar cells), whether or not assembled into modules, from China (C-570-980).
The Census Bureau has issued an AES Broadcast stating that effective immediately, the Harmonized Tariff Schedule tables in the Automated Export System have been updated to accept the changes to the 2012 codes, which largely result from World Customs Organization (WCO)-recommended changes that became effective in the HTS on February 3, 2012.
THQ will cut “up to 240 selling, general and administrative” jobs globally in a new restructuring plan, it said in a filing at the SEC Wednesday. The cuts will be part of “a realignment of the organizational structure” of the company, it said. Most of the restructuring plan is expected to be implemented by March 31, with the remainder to be finished by Sept. 30, it said.
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages posted to U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Web site as of February 1, 2012, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. These messages are available by searching on the listed CBP message number at http://addcvd.cbp.gov.
According to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection message, effective January 4, 2012, the International Trade Administration has instructed CBP to discontinue the suspension of liquidation and bond/cash deposit requirements for countervailing duty purposes for galvanized steel wire from China (C-570-976).